Final Confession
by ALovedOne
Summary: Mulan has been with the Merry Men, but when Aurora sends her a message pleading for her help, she leaves in a heartbeat, rushing to save Phillip and her from danger. -Sleeping Warrior


Mulan could see it from afar. She would be too late. The pleading message had reached her only a few hours before. Without giving it a second thought, she had swung on her horse and galloped away, rushing to help her friends in need. _Something is wrong. I can sense it. We need you here._ There was no further explanation, but Mulan did not care.

Having Aurora's writing say "We need you here" was all she needed. Now, as the palace was in sight, she could see that Aurora's guts had told her the right thing. They were in danger. She could hear Phillip's battlecry, Aurora shrieking, and, occasionally, she could see flashes of light through the windows. _Witch_, Mulan thought, and urged her already panting horse to move faster. A matter of seconds could decide over their deaths. When she arrived, she quickly jumped off and stormed through the door, then followed the noise.  
As she navigated her way through the palace, she noticed the debris all around her. It looked like the battle had been going on for a while. Finally, she reached a door. She could hear the battle going on behind it. The witch was growing angrier and more impatient. Mulan could hear her starting to throw spells around the room randomly with frustration, eager to just get lucky and hit them by chance. If Mulan would wait any longer, she might get that chance. Her warrior senses started to kick in. By listening to the sounds and shouts, she determined that the witch was not far away from the door, Aurora and Phillip were standing a bit further away to her left. If she would storm in and act without hesitating, she might win the fight against the witch without giving her a chance.  
And so she rushed in, sword drawn, into the room. But the witch had heard her and spun around to fire a spell at her. Mulan ducked, narrowly escaping it, then continued running away. Her plan had failed. The witch continued firing spells at her, always missing her by a quarter of an inch.

"Mulan!", Aurora cried from behind a pillar. Her arms were wrapped protectively around her belly. Phillip was standing next to her, ready to jump in front of her should a spell come too close. He was helpless, unable to get closer to the witch without being a direct target. It was then that Mulan realized what she had to do. She had to be the bait, distract the witch to give Phillip a chance to attack. And trying not get herself killed in the process. She began running around the room, seemingly aimless, and pretending to start amateur attacks towards the witch. The witch cackled and began to focus her speels more on Mulan again. The latter lifted her right heel up slightly and then brought it back to the floor - a sign that Phillip and she had used in many of their former battles. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw him nod. He understood.  
The witch's full attention was now on Mulan, who managed to get her to turn around enough for Phillip to get closer unnoticed.  
And just as the witch fired one last spell, he pushed his sword through her back. For a moment, she looked stunned. Then, she disintegrated into nothing but black dust, which was carried away by a gust of wind.  
"That was fantastic," Phillip cheered. Aurora came out from behind the pillar, running into Phillip's arms and embracing him happily. "You saved us," she said gratefully while she looked into Phillip's eyes beamingly, who then bent down to kiss her belly.

"I promised I'd protect you," Mulan's moan came from across the room. She was lying on the ground, blood gushing from a wound on her stomach were the last spell had hit its target. "Mulan!", Aurora cried out, rushing to her, Phillip on her heels. She kneeled down, taking the woman's head onto her lap and taking her left hand into hers. Phillip ripped pieces of fabric from his clothes, desperately trying to stop the flow of blood. But as the red substance continued dripping through the fabric and onto the floor, Mulan could only look into Aurora's eyes.  
"At least you're safe," she whispered. Tears ran down Aurora's cheeks. "This isn't right. Please, no, Mulan!" "It's okay. I did what I had to do. I vowed to keep you safe. I wouldn't have it any other way" It took Mulan every ounce of strenght to form those words, she could feel herself getting weaker. Aurora smiled slightly, and that was all Mulan cared about.  
"Back when….," Aurora began. "Back when you left to join Robin Hood - you said you wanted to tell me something. Back then, you just told me you'd leave. But there was something you didn't say, wasn't there? I see it in your eyes now. It's how Neal looked when he spoke of Emma. It's how Phillip looks at me." Her voice quivered. Mulan managed to bring up a smile. "Yes." She shortly glanced at Phillip, who shot her a glance of understanding and sympathy, and then looked down to continue taking care of the wound. In this moment, this was the most privacy he could give them, and Mulan was grateful for it.  
"And before it's too late, I need you to hear what I wanted to say." She was breathing heavily, not long now until she would be quiet forever. "I wouldn't have given my life like this for anybody else. You're special. And when you smile, it brings happiness to me. I'm a warrior, but I lost the fight against my feelings. I love you Aurora." And with those words, relieve rushed through Mulan.

Throughout her confession, Aurora's has eyes had gotten increasingly red, the tears came without stopping, her nose was running, and all Mulan could think was that this woman was the most beautiful she had ever seen. The world started to become blurry, the end was almost there. She could hear a voice desperately calling her name, but it seemed to come from far away. And then, as everything started to go hazy, she felt a soft pair of lips on hers, the lips she had longed for for so long.

And then the world was black, and Mulan was gone.


End file.
